Heavy Metal

Over the years I have been lucky enough to work with some really special and talented athletes.  Of all the athletes in all the codes, I have always held Ironman triathletes in particularly high regard.  The need to be proficient in three sports over such distances intrigues me from sporting, time management and human capability perspectives.  I still struggle to understand how, but I absolutely understand why.

This year’s Ironman World Championship was set to be a thriller.  The pro races featured a handful of past champions and the ranks of the age group competitors were filled with stories of overcoming adversity and the realization of lifelong dreams.  All great stuff, profound and inspirational.

The race itself is stuff of legend; racing across wind swept lava fields on the Big Island of Hawaii in the birthplace of the sport just sounds so epic.  To stand just to the left of that small pier in the small town of Kialua -Kona at the start of THE Ironman is a massive achievement.  To have qualified is a testament to an athletes ability to set goals, conquer challenges and just plain suffer.

A few weeks prior to the race I read about triple World Ironman Champion Chrissie Wellington and the injuries she sustained in training accident.  Two weeks out and injured.  Athletes at Chrissie’s level don’t leave things to chance.  Evey swim stoke, pedal rotation and running stride is planned. Game over I thought, two weeks out and the master plan has been disrupted.

As I watched the race unfold I was stunned by the performances on the course.  When the race announcers ran out of superlatives I knew it was a special day.  When Wellington climbed off the bike to start the marathon 10 minutes down on first place, I figured she was now racing for pride.  Over the next 42k I watched as an injured Chrissie Wellington worked her way through the field.  Close on her heeels was last years winner Mirinda Carfrae.  The two fought hard to the line with the difference down to a few minutes.  Both great champions, this time Wellington the winner.  A stunning and emotionally charged finish.

We can take some great lessons from Chrissie Wellington’s win.  She had a goal, to deliver her best possible performance on a given day.  To achieve this she built a long term plan.  Along the way she used other races to test her progress against the plan.  No doubt the plan adjusted along the way, but she continued to invest in her capability because it was the long term objective she wanted.  Chrissie worked with specialists to ensure she had the best information to plug into her plan. Adjust and test, adjust and test.

Close to her final objective, her big deliverable, she hit an obstacle.  For a long time Wellington had on her capability.  She never rested on her past performances and pushed to do things better.  She would have tweaked her plan due to the accident, but not lost sight of her deliverable.  On the big day, she adjusted her strategy to work to her strengths.  She innovated on the fly because that was what the competition required of her.

The ability to identify an objective, devise a plan to attain this objective and then deliver to perfection against the plan is rare.  To do so in circumstances that are beyond challenging is the domain of just a few.  Set a meaningful goal that will stretch you.  Speak with people in the know and engineer a process to realize your goal.  Grow your capability and hit the milestones along the way towards your big objective.  Accept adversity will come, but do not waver from your commitment.

Believe and deliver. Celebrate.